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Malaysia frees Australians held for stripping
SEPANG: Nine Australian men who provoked anger in Malaysia by donning skimpy swimwear bearing the Muslim country’s national flag at a Formula 1 race were released
SEPANG: Nine Australian men who provoked anger in Malaysia by donning skimpy swimwear bearing the Muslim country’s national flag at a Formula 1 race were released without charge on Thursday.
Four days after their arrest, the nine racing fans were brought to court to face potential charges of public indecency and national insult. But after apologising — and a dressing-down by a judge — they were released.
The stunt by the men who were celebrating countryman Daniel Ricciardo’s Malaysia Grand Prix win on Sunday had offended some Malaysians and sparked a debate back home over boorish behaviour by Aussie sports fans abroad.
The men, all in their 20s, were dubbed the “Budgie Nine” by Australian media, a reference to the swimsuits known in Australia as “budgie smugglers”.
A budgie, short for budgerigar, is an Australian parakeet.
The swimwear is so named for leaving little to the imagination.
In scenes that quickly went viral, the men also quaffed beer from their shoes, imitating Ricciardo, who had celebrated by chugging champagne from his foot wear. Judge Harith Sham Mohamad Yasin called their conduct “totally inappropriate”. “It hurt the feelings of all Malaysians to display the flag in such a manner,” he said.
